S-2135 : Still Just a Bill

Fix NICS Act of 2017

This bill amends the Brady Handgun Violence Prevention Act to require each federal agency and department, including a federal court, to:

• certify whether it has provided to the National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS) disqualifying records of persons prohibited from receiving or possessing a firearm, and
• establish and substantially comply with an implementation plan to maximize record submissions and verify their accuracy.

The bill amends the NICS Improvement Amendments Act of 2007 to:

• direct the Department of Justice (DOJ) to establish a state implementation plan, including benchmarks, to maximize the automation and submission of mental health and criminal history records to the NICS;
• waive the grant match requirement under the National Criminal History Improvement Program (NCHIP) for a state that complies with its implementation plan;
• reauthorize through FY2022 the NICS Act Record Improvement Program (NARIP);
• establish, as a priority area for NARIP grant funding, a domestic abuse and violence prevention initiative; and
• create a funding preference under the NARIP program for states that establish an implementation plan and use grant funds to upload felony conviction and domestic violence records.

It amends the Crime Identification Technology Act of 1998 to reauthorize through FY2022 the NCHIP program. If a state complies with its implementation plan, then the federal share of an NCHIP grant may exceed 90% of program costs.